Mercer Island City Councilwoman Tana Senn is the state’s newest lawmaker, having been appointed to fill the 41st District state representative seat vacated by Marcie Maxwell.

The Metropolitan King County Council appointed her Sept. 9. Senn was the top choice of local Democratic Party officials to fill the vacancy created by Maxwell’s decision to join Gov. Jay Inslee’s education staff.

Rep. Tana Senn

Since her appointment, Senn, 42, has hit the ground running, meeting with 41st District mayors, and attending local events in the district that stretches from the northern parts of Renton to the southern parts of Sammamish, encompassing Mercer Island and Newcastle, and parts of Issaquah and Bellevue.

Mercer Island City Councilwoman Tana Senn will fill the 41st District state representative seat vacated by Marcie Maxwell.

The Metropolitan King County Council appointed her Sept. 9. Senn had been the top choice of local Democratic Party officials to fill the vacancy created by Maxwell’s decision to join Gov. Jay Inslee’s education team.

Tana Senn

It marks a quick political ascension for Senn, a 42-year-old consultant who worked for a national Jewish women’s organization before coming to the Seattle area about a decade ago.

Washington’s newest state lawmaker is likely to be Mercer Island City Councilmember Tana Senn, who likely will be appointed to the state House next week.

A Metropolitan King County Council committee unanimously voted this week to send Senn’s nomination to the full council on Monday, spokesman Al Sanders said. She had been the top choice of local Democratic Party officials to fill a vacancy created by former state Rep. Marcie Maxwell’s decision to join Gov. Jay Inslee’s education team.

If the selection is formalized, it will mark a quick political ascension for Senn, a 42-year-old consultant who work for a national Jewish women’s organization before coming to the Seattle area about a decade ago. Read more

Mercer Island City Councilwoman Tana Senn emerged as the frontrunner among three possible replacements to fill the 41st District state representative seat vacated by Marcie Maxwell.

Maxwell, a Democrat, resigned her seat July 9 to take a job with the governor’s office. To fill the seat, members of her party nominated three candidates to replace her and presented those nominations to the King County Council.

The 41st district stretches from the northern parts of Renton to the southern parts of Sammamish, encompassing Mercer Island and Newcastle, and parts of Issaquah and Bellevue.

Mercer Island City Councilwoman Tana Senn emerged as the frontrunner among three possible replacements to fill the 41st District state representative seat vacated by Marcie Maxwell.

Maxwell, a Democrat, resigned her seat July 9 to take a job with the governor’s office. To fill the seat, members of her party nominated three candidates to replace her and presented those nominations to the King County Council.

The 41st district stretches from the northern parts of Renton to the southern parts of Sammamish, encompassing Mercer Island and Newcastle, and parts of Issaquah and Bellevue.

State Rep. Marcie Maxwell announced her resignation from elected office today to accept a position with the state’s Legislative Affairs and Policy Office.

Maxwell will join the state office as the senior education policy adviser in July.

“I’ve been honored to serve the people of the 41st District in South and East King County, and believe that my new position in the governor’s office will continue my work on their priorities for our state,” Maxwell said in a statement. Read more

Lawmakers confronted a familiar scenario as the Legislature convened Jan. 14 — a budget shortfall, opposing pressures to preserve essential services and rein in government spending, and a court mandate to spend more money on education.

Mark Mullet

Chad Magendanz

Observers expect education and transportation to rank as the dominant issues in the 105-day session. The state faces a $900 million budget shortfall for 2013-15 and, in the meantime, faces a court order to increase education funding by 2018.

In addition to the statewide issues on legislators’ docket, a lobbyist hired by city leaders to represent Issaquah is in search of support for local projects, including dollars to upgrade transportation infrastructure and Lake Sammamish State Park.

Issaquah is also focused on securing state dollars for a transportation improvement district in North Issaquah near Costco headquarters and high-traffic retail centers.